PSU

TEACHER WORK SAMPLE

TEMPLATE
Your First and Last Name: Larry Caffrey

Date Submitted: May 1, 2017

District where you completed

USD 446 Independence, KS
the TWS:

Name of School Building

where you completed the Independence High School
TWS:

Content Area of your TWS: Music - Band

TWS Unit Topic: Tuning and Intonation

Grade Level of the Classroom

/ Students in Which the TWS 9-12
Unit Was Completed:

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I. Contextual Information and Learning Environment Factors

A. Narrative General Contextual Information for Community, District, and School (limited to 1 page)
Community: Independence, KS is a rural community of just over 9,000 people located in southeast Kansas. Independence is famous for its large
Halloween festival, known as Neewollah. The event includes a fair set up downtown with rides and vendors, two parades, a marching band
competition, a musical, a pageant for high school seniors, and much more. All the events bring in people from all over the state and even from all
parts of the country and world in some cases. The community has a great history, but recently the population has taken a hit with the closing of the
local hospital. The closing caused many doctors to leave the area, and many others to relocate to other nearby communities so that they can be near a
hospital. From sitting in a school board meeting, I learned that the community is struggling to attract enough younger people to the area because of
its lack of resources and things to do. The community is also a very friendly community where everybody seems to know each other. I have only
lived here for 4 months now and I cant go anywhere around town without people recognizing who I am, even if I dont know who they are. The
average household income is $40,957, but a significantly large portion of that earns under $10,000 a year.

District: USD 446 serves 2168 students, 52.08% male and 47.92% female. The district does not serve quite as much ethnic diversity that the state
does, with over 76% students being white, 6.55% African American, 7.01% Hispanic, and 9.59% other. The community is a very poor community,
and it shows in the student population, with 62% of students being from economically disadvantaged households, and the number is still on the rise
with the closure of the hospital. For students with disabilities, the district is close to the state average, with 13.60% of its students with identified with
disabilities.

School: Independence High School has had 3 principals in the past 5 years, and their current principal is leaving after the school year is over. This
has been tough for the faculty to get any long-term programs running because by the time they find something, a new person steps in and changes
things. The students heavily involved in many activities in and outside of the school day. The school serves a population of 573 students, and of
those, about 170 of them participate in either band, orchestra, or choir.

Table 1.1 Class Contextual Information (limited to 1 page)

Grade level ___9-12__ Content area (e.g., mathematics) __Music _ Topic (e.g., geometry) Band __
Age range of students _______14-18____ Number of male students ____24_____
Total number of students _____49_____ Number of female students ___25___
Percentage of students receiving free lunch __________ Percentage of students receiving reduced lunch______________
[if free/reduced lunch information not available for class, provide school percentages]
Area in which students live (check all that apply) Urban _____ Suburban ______ Rural __49__

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Ethnicity of students (give numbers)
Language proficiency of students (give
numbers)
___1__ African American or Black ___3__ Hispanic or Latino
______ Native American/Alaskan Native ___43_ White
___1__ Asian or Pacific Islander ______ Other (specify) __________
___49_ Fluent English Proficient ______ English Language Learners

Identified special needs categories
represented (give numbers)
_______ Specific Learning Disability
___1___ Hard of Hearing
_______ Deaf
_______ Deaf-Blind
_______ Other Health Impaired
_______ Multiple Disabilities
_______ Brain Injury
_______ Established Medical Disability (0-5 yrs)
_______ At risk for developmental disabilities
_______ Speech/Language Impaired
_______ Visually Impaired
_______ Orthopedically Impaired
_______ Emotionally Disturbed
_______ Autism
_______ Mental Retardation
___2 __Gifted
_______ Developmentally Delayed
_______ Other (Specify)_______________

Subgroup Selected (describe the group): I have chosen to follow seniors and sophomores in this class. This is the high schools top
ensemble, essentially acts as an honors course. Because of this, there are more seniors in the group due to more experience and familiarity
with the program tends to lead to more maturity. There are 18 seniors that represent the diversity of the class accurately. There are 13
sophomores in the class. I initially expected the high schoolers to act more professionally, but after more exposure to the group, I have
realized that the opposite is the case. The seniors tend to talk more than other students, they are the last ones to be ready after the bell
rings, and they dont ask many questions and from observation, dont heed the advice of teachers very well. Collectively, the sophomores
have a more positive attitude in the classroom and are natural leaders. They are helpful in setting up the classroom and ask intelligent
questions.

Rationale for Selection: I chose this subgroup because it is my opinion that seniors are a good representation of how successful a band
program is. They are usually selected as the leaders, and in a school where they have had one band instructor their entire time, they
represent everything that the teacher has taught them. The sophomores still have two full years left in school, and thus represent the future
state of the band program, so I chose them as my other group so I could try to gauge a prediction of how the program will succeed in the
future.

Provide appropriate charts/graphs to display demographic data for district, school, and classroom in Appendix A.

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Table 1.2 Student Characteristics for Whole Class (limited to 1 page)
Student Characteristics
Intellectual Characteristics
- Including readiness,
cognitive abilities, learning
needs, developmental levels,
etc.
Previously demonstrated
academic performance/
ability:
% Above standard _____
% Meets standard _____
% Below standard _____
Social Characteristics
- Including emotional,
attitudinal, motivational, etc.
Personal Characteristics
- Including physical, social,
individual experiences,
talents, language, culture,
family and community
values, etc.
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Specific Descriptions
This class is a cognitively capable class that needs little to no special accommodations. They appear to understand
everything the teacher asks them. Because of their higher musical playing ability, they play music with higher ratings
that stretch their abilities. The range of playing ability does vary. There are 5 all-state players in this group, but there
are also some people in this group who are only enrolled in this class because the other band class didnt work with
their academic schedule.
The only thing that is graded in this course is attendance and daily participation. Every student is above the standard
in that aspect. This top ensemble has consistently received superior ratings at festivals for the last several years.
For a class this large, it is surprising to see how well everybody gets along. There arent any cliques within this
ensemble, which tends to be a commonality among many other musical ensembles I have seen. There are some
attitudinal and motivational problems in this group. It is something I have noticed district-wide, and it is no exception
for this class. Students have trouble finding what motivates them. For example, the teacher has a goal for them to
start rehearsal at 8:10 even though the bell rings at 8:00. Even with the ten-minute period students are still late to
their seats, and some students are still trickling in as last as 8:20. They are also very slow to respond to instruction.
When any teacher puts their hands up to conduct, there is usually a 15-20 second period where they are waiting for
everybody to get their instruments up and ready to play. They also have issues with cell phone use in this class. It is
not a 1:1 classroom, so cell phones are not allowed, but I have had to tell multiple students every day to put phones
away, and each time I receive excessive eye rolls. With all this being said, they still respond with a great sense of
urgency when a performance is coming up soon. The struggle is getting them to rehearse with this same sense of
urgency even when there is not a performance approaching that week.
This ensemble has a wide range of backgrounds and talents. Almost every student is involved in an extracurricular
activity outside of band, including sports, choir, orchestra, debate, clubs, or volunteering for after school programs.
Many students do however reflect the SES of the community. There are many students in the classroom who come
from low-income households, or come from homes where they are not living with their biological parents. I have had
one of the students tell me that she has a rough home life, but band gives her a chance to escape that for a moment
and focus on something that she does enjoy getting to do. This attitude is similar to many of the students who I have
had conversations with.
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B. Narrative: Implications for Whole Class Instruction Based on Information from Table 1.2 (limited to 1 page)
This is a talented group of students with several all-state members, so they wont need much extra assistance with musical definitions,

and they understand many abstract musical concepts. The students lack a routine that they do every single day, which is vital in music

fundamentals. Because of this, I will do the same exercises with them every day to build a routine, but add more things for them to think

about each day.

There are many behavioral issues in this class such as talking to each other during instruction and cell phone use. To overcome this, I

plan on keeping my talking to a minimum and keeping them playing as much as possible. This will help by not giving them the chance to

pull out their phones or turn to their neighbor to talk as soon as they have finished playing.

There are several students who have great knowledge of music and musical concepts, but lack in their application of this knowledge. I

anticipate that anytime I ask questions, they will immediately want to shout out answers. I should ask for hands and wait a few moments to

give other students a chance to ask questions, and I will also use proximity control to monitor student progress by leaving the podium and

listening to each instrument one by one.

C. Sub- Groups/Students Information

Describe this
Why was this
subgroup/student
subgroup/student What was learned about this subgroup/student?
using information
selected?
from Table 1.1
SUBGROUP Seniors I chose this group because Intellectual
or I wanted to see how well This group has many strong performers who have made many honor ensembles and
18 (9 male 9 female) the retained information received high ratings at solo and ensemble. Outside of music, over half of them participate
FOCUS that has been taught. My in one or more AP classes.
STUDENT hypothesis was that

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 because they have played
an instrument for a longer
period of time, it might be
harder for them to change
their schemas about the
concept of tuning.
Social
This is a group that has played music together for 7 years and has gotten to know each
other well. I never know of any disagreements between them and they do a great job of
supporting each other.

Personal
A diverse group with students coming from all backgrounds. I know that many of them
work jobs to help them support their parents, while others dont need a job or just have
one to earn some extra money for their own personal use.

Sophomores I wanted to compare this Intellectual

group to see the knowledge
13 (7 male 6 female) retention rates between ensembles, but they do respond well to instruction and many of them have strong
sophomores and seniors. I
believe that a sophomores
musical habits or more
malleable than those of a
senior, and therefore I
might see more growth
SUBGROUP
amongst this group.
or
FOCUS
STUDENT
There arent as many students in this group who participate in AP classes or honor
leadership characteristics.
Social
I notice more sophomores socializing less with other grade levels. This may be due to the
fact that for many of them, this is their first year in this ensemble, and most of their grade
level peers are in the non-auditioned music ensemble.
Personal
There is less diversity in this group than there is in the seniors. Most of this group comes
from stable homes where parents push them to succeed. This is not the case for all of the
group, but rather about 80%.

D. Narrative Implications for Sub-Groups/Focus Students Instruction (limited to 1 page)

It is my belief that the more time an individual spends on a task, the harder it is for them to break any poor habits they have developed. Therefore, I believe I am
going to have to work a little harder to see growth in the seniors for this unit. The senior class does work hard in academic subjects and I dont think theyll have
trouble understanding the actual content that I will be teaching. I see the trouble lying in the application of the knowledge because many of them have habits that

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will be hard to break. Many of them sit with poor postures that dont lend well to good intonation. I have addressed this issue before and it does fix itself, but only
for a few minutes before they go back to their original posture.
Because I have notice strong leadership in the sophomore class, I believe that they will respond eagerly to my instruction and will need less direction when it
comes to fixing poor habits. They have spent less time in poor habits, so I believe it will be easier to work with them. Their problem will most likely lie in the
actual content knowledge. From my few conversations with these students, they use a limited musical vocabulary and may not understand some of the things I will
talk about, such as chord structures and pitch bending. They have had less exposure to these topics, so it may be a struggle for them.

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II. Instructional Design

A. Narrative Description of Range of Objectives and Rationale for Selection (limited to 1 page)
This unit is mostly based on building a solid foundation of understanding of good intonation and developing the proper habits to begin working to achieving better
tones and more in tune notes. I have noticed that many students have developed poor playing habits, such as slouching when playing, playing with tension, and
playing with poor air support. Most of my time is going to be spent by unlearning their poor habits and replacing them with beneficial playing habits. This is going
to require a lot of me helping them define good playing fundamentals and building on the lower order thinking skills. The most common response that I receive
when I teach a concept is always why?. Therefore, I want to spend more time on defining and ensuring that they understand the basics of good musical playing
fundamentals.

B. State Objectives Here: Focus should be on student performance not activities. What will students know or be able to do? (limited to 1 page)

Level(s)
Obj.
Unit Objectives (e.g. Blooms
No.
Taxonomy)
Students will be able to explain the basics of good tone production, playing posture, and air support, and why it
1 is important to intonation.
Understanding
2
Students will be able to demonstrate good tone production, playing posture, and air support. Applying
3
Students will be able to identify the in tune and out of tune notes on each of their instruments. Remembering
4
Students will be able to manipulate notes to play in tune. Applying
Students will be able to recall which notes should be adjusted in a major chord and how they should be
5
adjusted. Remembering
Remembering
6
Students will be able to identify when they are in tune and out of tune Applying

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 Standard 2: Realizing artistic ideas and work through interpretation and presentation.
Process Component Pr.4.I: Develop strategies to address technical challenges in a varied repertoire of music and evaluate their success using feedback from
ensemble peers and other sources to refine performances.
-The students will be learning strategies that allow them to analyze their own performance and how to adjust fit into the rest of the ensemble. Specifically, they
will
Process Component Pr.2.N: Demonstrate, using music reading skills where appropriate, how knowledge of formal aspects in musical works inform prepared or
improvised performances.
-ThePre-Assessment: Pre-Testof
students will use their knowledge consisting of short answer,
chords structures multiplehow
to understand choice, and their
to tune true/false questions
instrument and(10 questions)
how they should fit into the entire ensemble.
T Lesson Formative
Instructional Activities/ Describe Specific Adaptations/
Lesson Date R Objecti Assessment
Strategies Differentiation
I ve(s) (formal/informal)
1 4/04 Intro Pre-Test Formative Pre-Test
Discussion over the pre-test, what we did and didnt
2 4/05 T 1,2 Introduction/Group Discussion Informal know, and what we will be going over for the next
few days.
Discussion over yesterdays topic, asking questions
and waiting several moments for more students to
3 4/06 TR 3,6 Lecture/Basic Exercises Informal
answer and calling on students without asking for
hands.
Discussion over yesterdays topic, asking questions
and waiting several moments for more students to
4 4/07 T 2,4 Lecture/Introduce Chorale Informal
answer and calling on students without asking for
hands.
C. Identify State Standards Benchmarks Addressed by Unit Objectives How do objectives address these standards? (limited to 1 page)

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 Discussion over yesterdays topic, asking questions
and waiting several moments for more students to
5 4/10 TR 4,5 Lecture/Chorale Informal
answer and calling on students without asking for
hands.
Discussion over yesterdays topic, asking questions
and waiting several moments for more students to
6 4/11 TR 4,5 Lecture/Chorale Informal
answer and calling on students without asking for
hands.
1,2,3,4,5,
7 4/12
6
Test/Chorale Formal Assessment

Summative Assessment: Post-Test consisting of short answer, multiple choice, and true/false questions (10 questions)

Table 2.1 Instructional Design Unit Plan T- Lesson integrates technology; R- Lesson uses reading strategies; I- Lesson demonstrates integration of
content across and within content fields

Table 2.2: Narrative Description of Pre-assessment, Formative Assessments, and Summative Assessment (limited to 2 pages)
Which
objectives Identify how the assessment will be
Describe the assessment to be Explain rationale for choosing
II. D, H, and K does this scored and/or the criteria to be
used this assessment
assessment used for evaluation.
address?
The short answer problems require
drawing a diagram, which is
important for students to visualize
Pre-Assessment 10 questions with short answer, what they are doing. I also included
1,5,6 Will be scored using an answer key
(Diagnostic) multiple choice and true/false questions over the key facts that
students need to know. These facts
are the basis of building strong
fundamental intonation skills.
In order to adjust pitch to play in Teacher will walk around the room
Formative Assessment Pitch-bending exercises
tune, an individual must know how 4 during this exercise and assesses
- Informal to manipulate individual notes. individual abilities.
The chorale tells students what the
Teacher will walk around the room
Formative Assessment pitch tendencies are for each note on
Chorale Exercise 2,3,5 during this exercise and assesses
- Informal the individual students instrument,
individual abilities.
and how to adjust for it.
Using a tuner for one student without
anybody else playing tells a student
After tuning, selecting students to
exactly where their pitch is at. While Using a tuner, the students will be
Formative Assessment play note for tuner to assess how
the goal is to get students to tune 2,4,6 assessed over how far out of tune they
- Formal they did.
without using a tuner, it is important are, and the quality of their tone.
to check progress to assess how you
did.
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Summative 10 questions with short answer,
Assessment multiple choice and true/false
Narrative for Instructional Design
II. E.
Why are the lessons sequenced in this
manner?
II. F.
What learning strategies were incorporated
into this unit?
How do the instructional strategies/activities
address the learning objectives for this unit?
II. G.
How will critical thinking and problem
solving strategies be implemented? Give
specific examples of use.
II. I.
Explain the reading strategies that will be
used throughout the unit. Give specific
examples. (Remember that using text is not a
reading strategy)
How will technology be integrated within the
unit? Explain both teacher use and student
use.
How does the unit demonstrate integration of
content across and within content fields?
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The short answer problems require
drawing a diagram, which is
important for students to visualize
what they are doing. I also included
1,5,6 Will be scored using an answer key.
questions over the key facts that
students need to know. These facts
are the basis of building strong
fundamental intonation skills.
The lessons are planned in a way that slowly builds a routine that the students can use every day in order to
get their instruments in tune. At the end of the unit, the whole process should take about 5 minutes in total.
Check for understanding, visual aids, group discussion, individual and group practice.
I provided a lot of the same information in different formats so that there was an increased chance that all
learners could grasp the concepts taught.
The students had to use critical thinking when it came to the actual practice of the lesson. I had discussed
what they should listen to when tuning, and it was their job to determine if they were completing all the
steps. They also had to analyze a chorale and figure out how they fit into the full ensemble sound by
knowing what chord voicing they were and how to adjust their note for the specific voicing.
Students were to summarize the materials given to them. Each student was handed a new chorale exercise
with new symbols, and another key that explained the symbols. Students were selected upon to summarize
what each symbol meant.
Because the goal of this unit is to get students to tune their instruments using their own ears and not a tuner,
students were to not have any tuners on their stands. The teacher played a loud drone for the students to
listen to and attempt to match. The teacher also used a tuner to walk by and check random students and
assess their progress.
The unit will discuss how intonation is a key fundamental to musical play, just as important as rhythms and
note names. This tuning process is universal across all types of musical ensembles and can be used at any
point throughout any rehearsal.
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II. J.
What specific adaptations or differentiated
activities were used to accommodate
individual learning needs for the whole class?
What specific adaptations or differentiated
activities were used to accommodate
individual learning needs for the identified
sub-groups / students?
Percussionists for the most part cant tune their instruments. Therefore, much of the daily lessons didnt
apply to them. I did have them play along on melodic percussion instruments to help provide a tonal center
for the band to listen to.
Because the sophomore class has many natural leaders, I would pause the tuning process and have one
sophomore play a note and have the rest of the band tune to that person.
The seniors had many habits they needed to break, so I spent more time asking them questions about
fundamentals such as how they should sit or produce a good tone.

Provide a copy of two complete detailed lesson plans in Appendix B.

III. Teaching and Learning

A. Narrative: Daily Teaching Reflections (limited to 4 pages)

Day 1: The students today took the pre-test. There was a lot less resistance than I was expecting. They knew that this wasnt for a grade and that it
was more for me to see what I needed to spend the most time teaching. I did not rush them, and it took about 10 minutes for all students to complete
their tests. I was surprised to find that everybody was completely engaged in completing their own test. Nobody was looking at their neighbors and
there was complete silence in the room, which is rare. After completing the tests, I warmed up the group and went through a tuning process without
giving much instruction. I just wanted to gauge how well they would do knowing that this was the topic that wed spend the next few days on. The
band is very good at noticing sound waves and when pitches dont match, but they arent very adept to adjusting to it. Many of them believe that it
isnt them that is out of tune and therefore they dont need to adjust. I also noticed many poor postures, which doesnt lend itself to good tone
production and in turn doesnt lead to good intonation.

Day 2: Most of todays lesson was spent reviewing the test and explaining the things students were confused about. Very few students knew the
answer to #2, which was something I had taught before. It was asking for the students two draw the sound waves of two people playing in tune, but
one playing with a bad tone. There were many different types of drawing from the students, but very few of them were correct. This told me that
they dont completely understand the concept of why we tune. Many of the students had this idea that tuning was about getting your notes to make
the needle on the tuner focus on the center, when that is only a small part of what the process does. When I showed them a correct diagram for
question #2, I heard many students say Oh, I should have known that. We went into a discussion of why this concept is so important, and then
talked about ways to produce a good tone. I questioned mostly seniors during this discussion, and when I asked for demonstrations, noted mostly
sophomores who were doing an excellent job of demonstrating. I then went into the discussion of chord structures and the difference between just
intonation and equal temperament. The students knew of the concept, but couldnt remember which notes needed to be adjusted and how they
should be adjusted. When I was questioning them over these problems, I was met with silence. I then went into a discussion over the last part of the
test, which talks about the process of tuning. All the students gave a very similar answer to the questions, but the questions werent quite what I was
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looking for. The question was about who they should listen to when tuning, and most students said to listen to the low instruments. This is partially
true, but only scratches the surface, so I spend some time teaching more specifically who they should listen to.

After the group discussion, I warmed up the group just like yesterday, and didnt give much instruction. My goal was to just observe and see if they
could apply the things that they had just learned. Many of them were sitting in poor postures even though it was something we had just discussed
when going over how to produce good tones. Some students, particularly sophomores, were sitting in good postures. I knew it was going to take
time for some of these concepts to stick, especially since many of them have developed habits that they have had for 7 years. I think that the constant
reminders and consistency over time will help break those habits.

Day 3: Today I began teaching the routine that the students will use to be able to tune as an ensemble in 5-10 minutes. I started with some warm-up
exercises and started to teach them how to bend pitches. I explained the importance of these exercise and how it will help them be able to quickly
adjust when they notice a problem with their tuning. I still had to remind students about sitting in proper posture, but I noticed more students today
quickly adjusting their postures today. There was less groaning this time and everybody was in a good posture after me waiting for about 10 seconds.
I immediately noticed an improvement in tone quality and let the students know how much better they sounded. I turned on a drone and told students
to listen to the pitch and then join in with their instrument when they feel they had the pitch internalized in their head. I walked around the room and
heard many good sounds, but didnt see much adjusting even though I heard some individuals not playing in tune. I pulled out a tuner and while the
full band was still playing a tuning note, I stopped by random students and held the tuner to their instrument to let them visually see where they
were. I did this to about 5 individuals before ending the tuning exercise and handing the rehearsal off to the director.

Day 4: Today started by immediately playing the warm-up exercises taught yesterday with little instruction. As we played the exercises, I gave
visual cues that reminded the students to sit in good posture, and noticed an immediate improvement in tone quality. More of the students were
already sitting properly, but not every student was. The visual reminders were a good way to remind students without singling anybody out. After
going through warm-ups, and going through the tuning process that we went through yesterday I introduced them to the chorale exercise. I explained
all the unique markings on each piece of music that told each instrument what the pitch tendency for each note on their instrument was. Because
there was a lot of information written on the music, we just sight-read it without much instruction from me. I noticed many poor postures and weird
sounds because they were so busy trying to decipher the music. I gently reminded them that even though we are looking at something for the first
time, we still need to be focusing on the fundamentals like posture and proper air support. We read it down one more time and it already sounded
much better.

Day 5: Today, we repeated all the steps that we have done in the previous days with little instruction or reminders. Postures are starting to look much
better without me having to say anything and students are playing with more steady tone qualities. I am noticing much more engagement now. Eyes
are on me a lot more now because they know I am making eye contact with them and making note of who is and isnt watching me. When we got to
the chorale portion of the routine, we spent 5 minutes rehearsing tricky spots. Chorales are supposed to be easy in nature and require little physical
or mental effort, freeing up the student to focus on listening to the pitch and their neighbors without getting lost. When we got to sustained major
chords, we tuned the roots, 3rds, and 5ths of each chord, reminding the students which direction and how much each pitch should be bent. Stopping
and doing this slow practice gave students a better idea of what they should be listening to when tuning.

Day 6: We went through the entire tuning procedure, top to bottom, without stopping and with little instruction. Students were fully engaged the
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whole time because I could see all eyes on me. The students have learned the procedure now, which was one of the main goals of this unit. The idea
wasnt to completely fix the ensembles intonation issues, but rather to give them the tools to be on their way to fixing it themselves. We ran the
chorale twice, making instrument adjustments after the first one to get the instruments better in tune. After we went through the routine, I did a brief
class discussion over the process, trying to guide the responses to similar responses that should be on the post-test.

Day 7: I handed out the test and gave the students a 5-minute time limit. All tests were completed on time. After I had all the tests, we went through
the tuning routine, and while it wasnt perfect, the sounds they were making were already more mature than they were last week when we began this
unit.

B. Classroom Management Plan (rules, procedures, preventative strategies, supportive strategies) (limited to 1 page)
One of the trickiest parts of this semester has been a management plan. I am confident in my ability to implement a plan into my own classroom, but my
cooperating teacher doesnt have a plan, and many students dont know what is expected of them. That has made it tough for me as a student teacher, because
anytime I try to enforce something, I am met with groans and eye rolls. What has helped me make progress with the students is being consistent in what I expect
from the students. They know that when I am on the podium, I am the only one who should be speaking unless I have called on one of them to speak. I ask that
they have their eyes on me as much as possible. They also know that I wont begin conducting until all voices are off and everybody is sitting in a good posture. I
have not changed any of these expectations on them, and they have slowly bought into my expectations over time because of this.
Procedures: -Students are in seat with instruments ready to go by the time morning announcements are over.
-Role is taken by a teachers assistant while the teacher is beginning rehearsal with the ensemble.
-If a student needs to leave the room at any time, they must have a planner signed by the teacher.
Preventative Strategies:
-Memorize the music so I can have my eyes on students always.
-Have a solid plan in place so that I can keep the horns on their face as much as possible.
-Use proximity control and walk around the room while students are playing, and stop moving when giving instructions.

C. Student Interaction and Engagement (Strategies for promoting student to student interaction and student motivation) (limited to 1 page)
One of the best ways I provide motivation for students is by building a positive classroom environment, where students always know where they
stand with me. If they are performing well that day, they will know. If they are having a rough day, I emphasize that its okay to have rough days, and
give them some steps to take to sounding better and play a piece of music I know they can do well. For promoting student to student interaction in
this unit, part of the routine is taking time to listen to their neighbors play, and they are given a few seconds to discuss things they heard in their
neighbors playing.

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D. Student Communication (detailed description of appropriate strategies to encourage student to student communication) (limited to 1 page)
As mention in the above box, students are encouraged to communicate with each other, but it is important that they are given certain parameters in doing so. In this
case, students are to tell their neighbors whether they think they are in tune, flat, or sharp. They are also told to determine their neighbors tone quality and be
specific in the feedback. If their neighbor is suffering in their tone quality, they remind them of the steps it takes to build a strong tone. This process encourages
student engagement and interaction while also not taking away from their own playing. Musicians have to be multi-taskers and listen to not only themselves when
they play but also those around them.

Narrative: Analysis of Assessment

E. Pre-Assessment
Overall analysis of results.
Discuss the results in reference to
the learning objectives.
Describe how pre-assessment data
was used to proceed with instruction
for all students.
What is the plan to differentiate for
all learners?
Overall, the students performed poorly on this test. The class average was a 57%. There were several students out for
a blood drive, but I was still able to get a good representation of sophomores and seniors. They performed about how
I expected them to in comparison to each other. The sophomore average score was 64%, and the average for the
seniors was 53%. The most commonly missed questions were #2, 4, 5, and 9. For question 9, most of the students put
very similar answers, but it wasnt the answer I was looking for. Had this been an actual test for a grade, that would
have been a question I would have given them credit for, but for the purpose of data, I counted that question incorrect
for most students.
The most commonly missed questions dealt mostly with fundamental issues, which tells me that they dont need to
learn new information, but rather change what they already know/believe into what they should know. This is going
to involve unlearning what they already believe to be true, and start from the bottom in building positive
fundamentals.
Looking at the data told me that I need to spend the most time addressing how to produce proper tones with healthy
technique, and addressing who they should be listening to when tuning. Many students say that they want to listen to
the lows when tuning, but they should instead listen to their neighbors and their principal players before listening
down to the lows.
For sophomores, I plan to use them as models more when explaining the tuning process, and I am going to be
spending more time assessing the seniors with tuners when I do my formative assessment to monitor their progress.

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F. Formative Assessment
Overall analysis of results.
Discuss the results in reference to
the learning objectives.
Are students learning what was
intended they learn?
Discuss any adaptations based on the
results of formative assessments.
Identify differentiation needed to
help all students meet the goals and
objectives of this unit.
G. Summative Assessment
What did the disaggregated data of
the assessment reveal?
Discuss the results in reference to
the learning objectives.
Did all students learn what was
intended they learn? Explain.
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Students were still struggling when I did my formative assessment. I would walk around the room and place the tuner
in front of random students to do a quick check to see how they did during the tuning process. I mostly did this to
students who I observed not making adjustments when we were tuning. Usually, not making physical adjustments to
the horn is a sign that the student is in tune. For the first few days, most of the students I checked were not in tune,
which I figured was to be expected. Gradually, more and more students were in tune when I came to check them over
the next few days.
Many students are heavily reliant on using a tuner on their stand when tuning. I have had to explain to them that this
is an ineffective way to tune because the tuner is picking up everybodys sound, not just their own. One of the goals
of this unit is to get the students to rely less on the tuner and use their ears during the tuning process. When the
teacher has to tune each individual with a tuner, it takes several valuable minutes out of each rehearsal and that time
could be better spent making music. Teaching the students to do this process themselves in a short amount of time
will save more time and be better for classroom management because less students will be sitting idly while others
are being tuned. For the first few days, I did expect them to still be reliant on me coming to tune them individually,
but over time, I saw more and more students adjusting themselves without me having to check them, and the overall
resonance of the band was also improving.
Because this project was less about progress, and more about establishing a routine and strong fundamentals, I didnt
stray too much for the original plan. I want students to be able to tune without a tuner, and the best way to do that is
to take the tuner away from them and question them over whether they were sharp or flat.
Seniors were the ones who I noticed out of tune the most, so I spent more time checking them when I went
around checking random individuals to see where they were tuned.
The data showed a lot of growth from the pre-test to the post-test. The students average was 79%, a 22% jump from
the pre-test, and a much more acceptable number. What was most interesting was the comparison between
sophomores and seniors. Both grades scored an average of 78%. Both grades increased their averages, but the seniors
jumped up by 25%.
The students improved in each objective. Again, my goal was not to build complete competency in actually being
able to tune independently, but rather to give them the tools to do so and to provide them with the fundamental
aspects of playing with good sounds in order to play with better pitch and blend. In that aspect, every single student I
observed met that objective.
While not every student completely grasped the fundamentals that I was trying to teach. As a whole, they have
developed more awareness of positive fundamentals than they did before. Except for two individual students, every
students score increased. My individual attention to the seniors while tuning seemed to be most beneficial to them.
Teacher Work Sample
 Provide a copy of pre-assessment document and the corresponding scoring key/rubric in Appendix C.

Provide a copy of one formal formative assessment document and the corresponding scoring key/rubric in Appendix C.

Provide a copy of one informal formative assessment document and the corresponding scoring key/rubric in Appendix C.

Provide a copy of the summative assessment document and the corresponding scoring key/rubric in Appendix C.

H. Visual Representation of Disaggregated Data

Chart/Table/Graphs of disaggregated data for the Pre-assessment should be included in Appendix C.
Due to the varied nature of data collected by the teacher candidates, each candidate is asked to create a chart/table/graph that includes data for the
Whole Class, Subgroup, and Focus Students. Title the table/chart/graph and use labels to accurately portray the data.

Chart/Table/Graph of disaggregated data for the Summative Assessment should be included in Appendix C.
Due to the varied nature of data collected by the teacher candidates, each candidate is asked to create a chart/table/graph that includes data for
the Whole Class, Subgroup, and Focus Students. Title the table/chart/graph and use labels to accurately portray the data.

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IV. Self-Evaluation and Reflection

A. Narrative description of Successful Activities and future implications

Based on the analysis of all the assessment

results, identify TWO learning objectives
from the unit students were most successful.
Objective 1:
Students will be able to explain the basics of
good tone production, playing posture, and air
support, and why it is important to intonation.
Give more than one reason for each of the successes identified.
-The test given dealt mostly with explaining fundamentals and why tuning is important, and the test scores
increased.
-During each lesson, I asked students questions about fundamentals of playing, such as asking them how
they should sit, what does it mean to play in tune with other players, and what a good tone looks and sounds
like. During this questioning, students provided thoughtful and accurate answers.

Objective 2: -During the tuning process, I noticed many students making adjustments to their horns. Many of them
didnt necessarily make accurate adjustments, but them fixing their horns told me that they were hearing the
Students will be able to identify when they are inaccuracies that they were supposed to be hearing.
in tune and out of tune -Even the students who werent making adjustments were making faces of displeasure during the tuning
process when they noticed things werent in tune. Not everybody knew what adjustments to make, but they
did know how to make the adjustments.

Discuss at least TWO things to do differently in the future to extend these successes to continue students academic growth.
-I need to incorporate more learning strategies that cater to different learning styles, particularly when it comes to these objectives over fundamentals of
playing. While most students understood the concepts being taught, not every student did. These two objectives are so important to the success of a
musician, and not much progress can be made until these skills are mastered completely.
-I feel I need to spend more time explaining the why of developing these important fundamental skills rather than just the what and the how.
Teaching the students why we do things a certain way will help the information stick more and make it more meaningful to them.

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B. Narrative description of Least Successful Activities and future implications
Based on the analysis of all the assessment
results, identify TWO learning objectives
from the unit students were least successful.
Objective 1:
Students will be able to recall which notes
should be adjusted in a major chord and how
they should be adjusted.
Objective 2:
Students will be able to manipulate notes to
play in tune.
Give more than one reason for each of the least successful objectives identified.
-This was an objective I spent less time addressing than I had originally planned on. Its not an objective
that is completely vital to a students ability to play in tune, so I spent less time on this objective and more
time on the objectives dealing with fundamentals.
-This is an advanced topic that even I struggle with as a performer to fully understand. When I discussed
this topic in the class, many students didnt even have a basic understanding of what chords are, and this
concept cant be taught without teaching what chords are first.
-Students demonstrated the ability to adjust their pitch when they werent in tune, but many students didnt
know what specific adjustments should be made.
-I spent less time on teaching the students how to identify what specific adjustments need to be made. I
taught them how to identify when adjustments be made, but didnt send much time telling them how to
identify whether they were sharp or flat.

Discuss at least TWO things to do differently in the future to improve students performance.
-When it comes to this intonation unit, I need to first make sure that the students have a solid understanding of what chords are and the vocabulary that I
will use when teaching about chord structure and how to tune chords. I was using words that many students didnt understand, so going back and
teaching the basics of chords might assist with that.
-I spent a lot of time teaching students what to do when a not is sharp and how to bend the pitch down, but I didnt spend much time on how to change
the note when it is flat and needs to be bent up. It is a different process for brass players and is a tough skill to master.

TABLE 4.1 Communication Log

Follow Up
Method of Result or Impact on (if
Date Person Contacted Contact Reason for Contact Instruction necessary)
The parent thanked me for bringing
Daughter had phone out in class and I had it to their attention, and I have not
4/06 Parent/Guardian In Person
to take it away. seen the students phone out in class
since.
Student who usually talks in class was
Students cooperation in class has
4/06 Parent/Guardian Email focused today, and I wanted to let the
been much more consistent.
parent know that their student did well.

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 Follow Up
Method of Result or Impact on (if
Date Person Contacted Contact Reason for Contact Instruction necessary)
Still talks to neighbor, but when
they notice that I am watching, they
4/07 Student In Person Talking to neighbor during instruction
stop immediately without me
having to say anything.
Students pre-test score and post-test score
were both low and no growth was seen. I Student has been sitting with better
4/13 Student In Person wanted to visit with student just to see if posture and her tone quality is
there was a way I could get them to grasp slowly improving.
the information.

C. Narrative Reflection on Impact of Communications (limited to 1 page)

Any time I talked with a student, I tried to use positive language and let them know that I like them as an individual and I just want to see them succeed more in
class. With the students who was demonstrating disruptive behavior, this positive and private approach. I dont want to call their name out in front of everybody
and cause embarrassment if there is no need for it. Most problems like this can be solved by building a positive relationship with the student and clearly outlining
for them what your expectations are.

Talking to parents has been incredibly beneficial. Mostly because parents are excited to know that I am concerned about their children and still hold them to high
standards. Every parent deserves to know when their child has experienced success in the classroom, and sometimes it is more meaningful when the information
comes from somebody who isnt their child. The parents I talked with were appreciative that I took the time out of my day to meet/talk with them and I noticed an
immediate motivation boost in the students.

D. Narrative Reflection on Future Professional Development (limited to 1page)

Identify at least TWO aspects of instruction that could be improved. What specific professional development opportunities/activities will
Explain reasoning. help to acquire that knowledge or skill?

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Aspect 1:
-I want to try to incorporate more learning activities that help student
with different learning styles. Most of my teaching was in lecture format
and I didnt provide many different activities because I was mostly trying
to establish a routine.
In the future, once I routine is established, I can add in additional and
more engaging activities/exercises that provide more student feedback
and encourages more active participation. Many students get bored with
routines, and providing additional activities on some days may assist with
student motivation.

Aspect 2:
- My summative assessment didnt quite measure all my objectives. The
test did a great job of measuring the objectives that required students to
identify and explain ideas, but didnt measure the objective that required
the students to demonstrate the skills taught.
-For formative assessments, provide more than just a written test. There needs
to be a playing portion where students need to demonstrate the objectives that
have been taught.

REFERENCES

Addair, R. (2016). Tuning for the Modern Wind Ensemble. Fredericksburg: Addair Music Production, LLC.

Kansas State Department of Education. (2016). Buidling Report Card. Retrieved from Kansas Report Card 2015 - 2016: http://ksreportcard.ksde.org/

APPENDIX A

Enrollment
Building: 601 District: 2168 State: 484496

Building Ethnicity District Ethnicity

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 Building Economically Disadvantaged District Economically Disadvantaged

Classroom Ethnicity

APPENDIX B

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Date: 4/05/15
Class: Wind Ensemble 1st Period

Teacher/Conductor Name: Jacob Caffrey

Cooperating Teacher: Erin Shelton
Prior Knowledge Skills
-Students have already learned what my teachings are for building perfect posture and tone
qualities.
-Students know the basics of tuning and why it is an important process.

Rehearsal Objective
- Students will be able to explain the basics of good tone production, playing posture, and air
support, and why it is important to intonation.
-Students will be able to demonstrate good tone production, playing posture, and air support.

Assessment of the Rehearsal

-Teacher will assess students through a group discussion and making note of their responses to
questions.
-The teacher will walk around the room and observe postures and tone production of
individuals.
Relevant Contextual Factors -Try to use sophomores as examples/models
Modifications/Accommodations needed: State Standards Addressed
of proper posture
Standard 2: Realizing artistic ideas and work through interpretation and presentation.
-Spend more time observing the seniors and
Process Component Pr.4.I: Develop strategies to address technical challenges in a varied
their postures and tone productions.
repertoire of music and evaluate their success using feedback from ensemble peers and other
sources to refine performances.
Personal Improvement Objective
Process Component Pr.2.N: Demonstrate, using music reading skills where appropriate, how
-Part of Teacher Work Sample Intonation
knowledge of formal aspects in musical works inform prepared or improvised performances.
Unit
-Focusing today solely on the warm-up.
Lesson will be very short to allow time for
rehearsal of contest music.
Instructional
materials/resources/technology Rehearsal Plan
-Drone played over speakers -Be able to keep the lesson moving with as
Pittsburg State University little idle time as possible.
Teacher Work Sample
Time Activity Description Purpose Sequence 5-10 Test Discuss test Students -Go question by question and g
minute Review responses need to the correct answers to the
s and answers know questions.
what I
am
looking
for.
5 Warm- Students Establish -Remind students of proper
minute Up will begin the first postures and how to produce
s teacher- part of proper tones.
directed tuning -Concert F Remington in whol
warm-up routine notes
process -Sit like you are about to stan
-Song and Wind

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 Date: 4/06/17
Class: Wind Ensemble 1st period
Teacher/Conductor Name: Jacob Caffrey
Cooperating Teacher: Erin Shelton
Prior Knowledge Skills
-Students have already learned what my teachings are for building perfect posture and tone
qualities.
-Students know the basics of tuning and why it is an important process.

Relevant Contextual Factors -Try to use sophomores as examples/models

Modifications/Accommodations needed: Rehearsal Objective
-Students will be able to identify the in tune and of
outproper
of tuneposture
notes on each of their instruments.
-Students will be able to identify when they are in-Spend more
tune and outtime observing the seniors and
of tune
their postures and tone productions.
Assessment of the Rehearsal
-Teacher will assess students through a group discussion and making note of their responses to
-This is day 2 of the intonation unit, and
questions. Personal Improvement Objective
students havewill
-The teacher already
walklearned
aroundwhat I expect
the room and to
observe postures and tone production of
see from their
individuals. playing postures.

State Standards Addressed

Instructional
Standard 2: Realizing artistic ideas and work through interpretation and presentation.
materials/resources/technology
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-Drone played over speakers -Be able to keep the lesson moving with as
little idle time as possible.
Process Component Pr.4.I: Develop strategies to address technical challenges in a varied
repertoire of music and evaluate their success using feedback from ensemble peers and other
sources to refine performances.
Process Component Pr.2.N: Demonstrate, using music reading skills where appropriate, how
knowledge of formal aspects in musical works inform prepared or improvised performances.

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Rehearsal Plan
Time Activity Description Purpose Sequence Assessment
10 Warm- Students Establish -Remind students of proper -Observe
minute Up will begin first part postures and how to produce postures and
s teacher- of tuning proper tones. listen to
directed routine -Concert F Remington in whole sounds of
warm-up notes individuals.
process -Sit like you are about to Keep
stand. reminding
-Song and Wind them of the
-Concert Bb Major Scale in fundamentals.
rounds
-Pitch bend exercise
5 Tuning Students Put in to -Drone on concert F -Remind
minute will use the -Students audiate/sing pitch students that
s actually knowledg -Students play pitch today, they
begin the e we have -Stop playing and listen to drone need to listen
tuning gained again to the trio of
process -Play pitch again players
now -Repeat process for Bb and A around them.
APPENDIX C
Pre-Test/Post-Test Answer Key
Pre-Test/Post-Test 22% increase
Sub-Group Data

Item Analysis